There is a strong societal need to evaluate and understand the sustainability of biofuels, especially because of the significant increases in production mandated by many countries, including the United States. Sustainability will be a strong factor in the regulatory environment and investments in biofuels. Biomass feedstock production is an important contributor to environmental, social, and ec...

African agricultural input subsidy programmes (ISPs) have primarily focused on conventional intensification: raising yields through increased use of inorganic fertiliser and improved seeds. Yet the yield effects from maize-focused ISPs been smaller than anticipated, due in part to poor maize response resulting low soil organic matter or pH. Joint with complementary fertility management practice...

oday, we are witnessing important new developments that go beyond “traditional” chemical engineering. Engineers at many universities and industrial research centers are working on novel equipment and techniques that potentially could transform our concept of chemical plants and lead to compact, safe, energy-efficient, and environment-friendly sustainable processes. These developments share a co...

The cork oak woodland production systems result from the integration of conflicting activities in the same space creating the need of constant search of equilibrium between its components in order to achieve sustainability. In a climate change environment, associated with recent modifications in rural societies, adaptive management concepts are needed so as to maintain cork oak woodland systems...

A rich body of literature investigates the many ways in which nature is impacted upon and transformed by the “endless accumulation of capital.” Much less attention has been reserved for understanding how capitalist actors increasingly aim to profit from the non-extractive use of nature. While recognized as important, the theorization of conservation as a capitalist project has only just commenc...

Increasing food production and mitigating climate change are two primary but seemingly contradictory objectives for tropical landscapes. This special feature examines synergies and trade-offs among these objectives. Four themes emerge from the papers: the important roles of both forest and agriculture sectors for climate mitigation in tropical countries; the minor contribution from deforestatio...

Bangladesh is dominated by a small-holder agrarian economy under extreme stress. Production shortfalls, increasing economic polarization, and chronic malnutrition are persistent, but major famine has been diverted in part by significant growth in agriculture. This recent history is open to both Malthusian and Boserupian interpretations-a history we explore here through a test of the induced int...